Cabaye, 28, left his Newcastle teammates ahead of Tuesday's game at Norwich City and headed back to the North East to collect some belongings before flying to Paris -- where he is expected to undergo a medical and sign a three-and-a-half-year deal on Wednesday.

L'Equipe claims PSG will pay an initial 20 million euros for the midfielder -- who cost the Magpies five million euros when he joined from Lille in 2011 -- and will pay a further maximum of three million euros in performance-related bonuses.

"We chose Cabaye for three reasons,” he said. “One, he's a very good player, very promising in our eyes. Two, I've not met him yet, but I've been told he's a really good guy. Three, he's French and it's very important for us to bring French players to PSG, to bring them back to the French league."

Reports in the French media claim senior PSG players Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Thiago Silva were asked about Cabaye's potential arrival, and were said to be sceptical as to what he could bring to the club, with the trio of Thiago Motta, Marco Verratti and Blaise Matuidi currently functioning effectively.

"Everyone has their job to do. There are important players, like the captain, Thiago Silva, and Ibra, who might have a feeling about this or that player,” Al-Khelaifi said.

“But they are completely in step with what the club is doing from every point of view. Of course, they want the best players in the world to come to Paris. The fans also want that. But Cabaye is a very good player, there is no doubt about that."